Manicuring implement.



'T. MILLER.

MANICURINGHVIPLENIENL APPLICATION FILED MAY 22. w09.

l 789 8 Fatenled Apr. `11, 1916.

lili/.IIA

1IIE COLUMBIA PLlINoaIzAr-II co., WASHINGTON. D. c.

'f 'v after described, @11d the scOPe 0f the appli' THEODORE MILLER, OF NEW YORK, N. VY.

MANICURING IMrLEMENT. j

Specification of Letters Patent. i

Appli-sation med May 22, 1909. seriarNo. 497,790.

To all whom t may concern Be it known that I, THEoDoRE MILLER, residing atvNew York, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented certain Vnew and useful Improvements in Manicuring Implements, of which the following is a specification.

|This invention relates broadly to manicuring implements and more particularly to an implement adapted to hold avmember which is employed to remove the surplus cuticle about the root or matrix of the finger nails.

' The present invention contemplates certain improvements over that disclosed in my co-pending application' Serial No. 453,957, iled September 21st, 1908.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide a new 'and improved implement adapted to securely clamp a small cylindrical body of leather or other material which is Vemployed in removing the surplus cuticle.

' Another object is yto provide clamping means whereby the cylindrical piece may be quickly removed from the holder when worn and a fresh one substituted.

A further object is to provide an imple- `ment of vthe above character which will be self-contained and capable of being conveniently carried in the pocket.

Other objects will bein part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter.

'The invention accordingly consists, in the Vfeatures of construction, combinations of elements andarrangements of parts hereincation of which will be indicated in the appendedclaims.

In the accompanying drawings wherein I have illustrated a preferred form of the invention; Figure 1 is a view f in elevation thereof; Fig.4 2 is a longitudinal sectional view ofthe same; Fig. 3 is a similar view of a portion of-'the instrument showing the manner in which the clamping-means may V`be manipulated; Fig. 4 is asimilar view showing the manner in whichthe clamping member may be inserted in thehandle when f the instrument is not in use; Fig. 5 is a view in elevation showing a cartridge which is adapted to be carried in the handle of the instrument; Fig. 6 isa longitudinal sectional view of the holder showing the means employedfor preventing the clamping member lfrom being entirely withdrawn from the Similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views of the drawing.

Referring now to the drawings, 1 designates the handle ofthe instrument which, in the present instance, is hollow and closed at one end; the opposite end being open as shown so as to receive the holder 2. Holder 2 is adapted to be reversibly inserted in the openend of the handle, as will be obvious from an inspection of the drawings.

patented Apr. 1i, 1916.

3 indicates a substantially U shapedl clamping member which-is receivedl in a central'bore 4 of the holder 2, andis slidable therein. This clamping vmember which is preferably'made of spring metal has diver- Vgent opposed arms 5 which extend through la cap 6 inserted in the outery end of the holder, the construction being such that when the member is pushed inward as shown in Fig. 2, arms 5 will be caused to approach each other and thereby clamp the cylindrical piece, and when withdrawn, as shownin Fig. 3, the arms will automatically separate.

In order to prevent the clamping member from being entirely withdrawn from the holder, a keeper 7v is inserted between the arms 5 within the holder. This keeper which is substantially T shape, as shown, is loosely confined within the holder, the stem thereofV extending within bore 4 and the crossl piece or head being received in an enlargedportion' 8 of saidbore It will be seen that whenthe clamping member is pulled outwardly from the holder, the inner end of the p stem'of the T-shaped keeper will be engaged? by the end wall of the U-shaped clamping member, and that the opposite ends of the vheadof the keeper will engage the inner annular edge of the cap 6 and positively prevent withdrawal of the clamping mem- V ber beyond a-prescribed limit.

vThe T-shaped keeper has peculiar advantages; its stem projecting into the reduced thebore 4 and engages the rear annular surface `of the cap 6 for preventing'outward .rear portion of the bore'4 serves to-retain a desirable length ofthe inner -end of the clamping member within said bore for cooperating with the walls of the cap 6 to hold the clamping member'relatively steady, even -when said clamping member is in its outer- Lmost position. "The head part ofthe' keeper tslooselyfwithin the enlarged portion 8 of `held relatively stationary and being between the arms of the clamping member, is engaged, upon its opposite side faces by said arms, and the friction set up by such engagev ment increases as the clamping member is forced inwardly. In forcing the clamping member inwardly, the outer surfaces of the arms engage theopposing faces of the cap 6, and the arms are forced toward each other and against the sides of the keeper.

The elongated friction surface provided by the stem of the keeper provides ample resistance to prevent accidental withdrawal of the clamping member. The vkeeper thus acts as effective means for retaining the clamping member in its inner or clamping position. Q

The engagement of the keeper or friction member 7 in the groove 8 obviously permits a limited ,lateral movement of the keeper with the jaws, and this is of especial value where an excess of pressure may be developed in one of the jaws over the other, as will constantly occur in practice, in that it permits the keeper to transmit the excessive pressure to the second jaw and force the second jaw tightly against the wall of the bore 4 so as to retain the second jaw against 'a natural tendency to creep outwardly from the holder.

9 indicates a cartridge which is adapted to be received within the handle of the instrument. This cartridge comprises receptacles l0 and 11, the larger of which is adapted to carry the cylindrical pieces to be used in manicuring and the smaller receptacle is intendedrto be used for a manicuring abradant in paste form. Receptacle 11 is provided with a reduced portion which fits lwithin receptacle 10 and forms a closure therefor.

I-Iaving thus described-my invention the manner in which the same can be used may now beY understood. The holder is first withdrawn from the handle which permits the cartridge to be withdrawn therefrom. The holder is then re-inserted in the handle in the manner shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. 'Ihe clamping member 3 may then be pulled outwardly to permit a cylindrical piece to be inserted between the ends thereof so that when said clamping member is pushed inwardly within theholder, the arms 5 will approach each other and firmly clamp such cylindrical piece. The instrument is then ready for use and may be grasped in the hand. in a manner similar to that in which a pencil is grasped and thecylindrical piece reciprocated with respect to the edge of the cuticle of the nail. v

It will accordingly be seen that I have provided Va simply constructed implement of the above character which is not only selfcontained Vbut is capable of being conveniently carried about in the pocket. It may also be manufactured at a modicum of cost.

As many changes could be made in the above construction and many apparently widely different embodiments of this invention could be made without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

l. In a manicuring implement, a pair of flexible jaws, an operating member slidable longitudinally over said jaws to close said jaws, and tending to ex a portion of said jaws, and means for limiting the movement of said jaws, said means being carried by said operating member and frictionally engaging said jaws and thereby servingalso to frictionally retard the movement vof said operating member relatively to said jaws.

2. In a manicuring implement, a pair of jaws, movable squeezing means engaging said jaws for squeezing said jaws toward each other, and a friction member movable with said squeezing means disposed between opposing surfaces of said jaws having frictional engagement therewith to retard movement of said squeezing means from squeezing position.

3. In a manicuring implement, a pair of jaws, movable squeezing means engaging said jaws to squeeze said jaws toward each other, a T-shaped friction member disposed with its stem portion extending longitudinally between said jaws to provide a considerable surface frictionally engaged by the opposing-inner surfaces of said jaws, the opposite end portions of the head of said T- shaped friction member projecting outs wardly from between said jaws at opposite sides thereof, and means engaging the projecting `portions of the head of said 'Il'- shaped friction member to Vmove said T- shaped friction member with said squeezing means, whereby to lretard movement of said squeezing means from squeezing position.

4. In a manicuring implement, a pair of jaws, movable squeezing means engaging said jaws to squeeze said jaws toward each other, an elongated friction member extending longitudinally between the opposing surfaces of said jaws having opposite surface portions frictionally engaged by the op- 

